road trippin 3: a farm house & a farm house beer

I drove up and through the Jackson Forest to reach caspar, a small little town. I stayed at the nonprofit hostel style Jug Handle Creek Farm for a few days. It was an old place (built before 1900), but beautifully maintained.

And for $28/night for my own room, queen sized bed, lemme hear you say HOLLA-day inn (as a friend would say). After an uncomfortable night at the hostel and the driving, I felt like I was sleeping on a poofy cloud.

They had a wonderful organic garden, where you were free to pick the produce and use it in the ktichen.

It was my first time seeing a rhubarb plant.

Strawberries were slowly starting to grow.

Peas!

One thing I enjoy about the outdoors is seeing all the different plants and their many wondrous colors. This bright flower was no exception.

Just a few miles away was Fort Bragg and the North Coast Brewery. They make Old Rasputin & Pranqster Ale to name a few.

Across the street is their brewpub, which was a little more upscale than your average bear. To drink, I had Le Merle, a saison/farmhouse style ale. I've only tried a saison one other time at The Bruery, but I really enjoyed this beer, particularly the smell, which reminded me of a fallow field, whatever that is. That's a horrible description, but hey, I tried.

So after reading all about it in Dennis' blog, I was delighted to see cioppino($24.95) on the menu (Sorry for the bad picture). It was filled with red snapper, shrimp, small scallops, and a clam or two and served with several slices of garlic bread. Upon my first sip, I was surprised to find it have quite a kick! Overall, an enjoyable stew, one I would like to try again somewhere else to compare or give it a shot myself.

I usually don't get dessert, but I decided to splurge for one night and ordered the mud cake made with their stout and topped with some vanilla ice cream along with a glass of Brother Thelonius, a Belgian style strong dark ale. I believe this was my first time having a beer inspired dessert, and this fell short. While I could appreciably taste the stout, the cake was way too dry, and the ice cream was the only thing making it work.

I came back to the farm house, feeling tipsy, and swapped tall tales with the other inhabitants over the warm inviting fire. It was COLD there (and we're talking about august folks...)